Anheuser-Busch InBev’s 10 Barrel Brewing, based in Bend, Ore., is putting its state-of-the-art headquarters on the market. According to a commercial real estate listing, the facility, finished in 2016, is for sale for $19.7 million.
10 Barrel will remain a tenant in the space for “seven and a half years,” according to Brewbound. But this isn’t about 10 Barrel’s beer. It’s about the future.
In August 2019, AB InBev’s former High End president Felipe Szpigel announced his new venture, Five Drinks Co., a line of ready-to-drink (RTD) canned cocktails. Szpigel’s partners? Jeremy and Chris Cox, co-founders of 10 Barrel Brewing, along with former ZX Ventures executive Roberto Schuback and former Mother executive Gustavo Sousa.
Five Drinks Co.’s offerings are currently contract brewed at 10 Barrel’s Bend facility. Meanwhile, 10 Barrel has also launched its own RTD canned cocktail line, which, according to the brewery website’s “Not Beer” page, “have been selling like hot cakes.”
10 Barrel operates five other brewpubs in the West: Bend, Ore., Portland, Ore., Denver, Boise, Idaho, and San Diego. So its beer will be fine, for now. But it’s the “Not Beer” we should be paying attention to — the canned cocktails, spritzers, seltzers, and other potential beyond-beer offerings — that can easily be produced at any of AB InBev’s many facilities.
My prediction? Maybe A-B isn’t taking over craft beer. Maybe its plan all along was to turn all the craft beer into spritzy, profitable flavored malt beverages (FMBs).
Pabst Doesn’t Need MillerCoors to Brew Its Beer Anymore (So There!)
On Monday, Pabst Brewing Company announced plans to move production to City Brewing Company by the end of 2024. The announcement comes a year after Pabst settled a heated lawsuit with its current contract brewing partner, MillerCoors.
Pabst will continue brewing at MillerCoors facilities through 2020, but plans to move a majority of production to City Brewery facilities by December 2024. Pabst and City Brewery’s agreement is effective until 2040.
City Brewing Company, also called City Brewery, is a contract production and packaging facility with locations in LaCrosse, Wis., Latrobe, Pa., and Memphis.
Long-term relationships often require work and change, and this seems like a healthy step for Pabst. MillerCoors was a formidable home for Pabst’s brands, but PBR and its siblings like Lone Star, Schlitz, and Old Milwaukee need more stability. City Brewery promises to provide that.
In the end, whatever keeps PBR on the map is a good move.
BA Announces New Board Members, Almost All of Them Women
The Brewers Association announced five elected candidates to its board of directors, effective February 2020. Four of the five are women, and all five will serve a three-year term in the packaging breweries, brewpubs, and taprooms departments.
Representing packaging breweries are Sara Nelson of Fremont Brewing in Seattle and Jason Perkins of Allagash Brewing in Portland, Me.; brewpub representatives are Sean Casey of Church Brew Works in Pittsburgh and Jennifer Talley of 1849 Brewing Co. in Grass Valley, Calif.; and representing taprooms is Melissa Romano of Lake Anne Brew House in Reston, Va.
These elections are noteworthy for the obvious reason: the craft beer industry’s overly male and white representation. Including more women in leadership positions is an excellent step. However, there is always room for improvement, not only in gender inclusivity but in electing more people of color and individuals in other minority groups. I look forward to the BA’s continued advancement in these areas.
